Sleeves of thermal-protection garments such as coats, jackets, and undergarments generally end at the wrist, leaving the hands and fingers unprotected from cold, requiring gloves or mittens.
Gloves and mittens traditionally have the disadvantages of needing to be carried separately from the coat or jacket, and so frequently are lost. This can be a serious problem for skiers or outdoor users, and a great nuisance for the parents of small children. Also, since gloves and mittens typically cause the wearer to lose dexterity, both children and adults alike are prone to remove the gloves or mittens in order to more easily grasp ski poles, fashion snowballs, etc., thereby adding to the chance that the removed article will be lost. Indeed, fingerless gloves have been developed to address this problem by keeping the hand properly covered while leaving the fingers, or some portion of the fingers, uncovered for better dexterity. But even fingerless gloves can be lost if they are not attached to a coat or garment.
Numerous systems for preventing glove loss have been developed, such as by a string attached to mittens and looped around the neck, clips, zippers or buttons removably attaching the gloves to the sleeves, and so on. Several garments known in the prior art disclose mittens or gloves permanently attached to a coat or other garment. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,296,966 to H. A. Kaufman, U.S. Pat. No. 2,675,554 to P. L. Gertz, U.S. Pat. No. 4,359,784 to Harrington, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,297,746 to Zarbos all disclose outer garments with a combined sleeve and mitten/glove attachment. However, all of these prior art documents disclose a means to remove the hand from the mitten or glove without removing the outer garment. The gloves or mittens typically can be removed by the user through a slit or hole therein, tempting a child or adult to brave the cold and wet in exchange for better dexterity. Further, snow is able to enter through the hole or slit in the mitten and reach the skin, making play uncomfortable.
Some prior art patents disclose garments with gloves or mittens attached to the sleeves in which the hand cannot be removed therefrom, such as through a hole or slit in the mitten. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,480 to Martin discloses a garment for abnormal persons having a compulsion for destructive activity. The garment includes large mitts attached thereto for controlling excessive hand activity. Each mitt includes many “envelopes” of material which are designed to completely enclose the hand and keep the wearer from grasping things. While this invention is useful for the particular problem it solves, a normal child or adult playing in the snow should not be so restrained, such that it is highly desirable that any permanently attached gloves or mittens allow the wearer to grasp items.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,016,027 to Kintanar teaches cosmetic gloves which extend up the arm of the wearer and are joined together about the shoulders of the wearer. These gloves are provided for cosmetic purposes and are not suited for keeping the user's hands warm and dry in cold weather. U.S. Design Pat. No. D241,185 to Schlechter shows a cosmetic type fishnet garment which is provided for ornamental purposes wherein fill length arms and gloves are provided; however such a garment is not functional for winter weather use. U.S. Design Pat. No. D449,422 to Massie likewise teaches a mitten garment which extends up the arms and joins about the shoulders; however the mittens are not permanently attached to any garment.
Finally, there have been attempts to keep the mittens or gloves on the wearer, such as a small child, by providing elongated portions attached to the glove which extend up the forearm of the wearer. U.S. Pat. No. 6,363,534 to Clough teaches a protective mitten with a long elasticized snow sleeve or band that covers a major portion of the forearm of a child. While this invention teaches the aspects of wrist protection from the cold and snow, the long sleeve is not attached to an undergarment, is prone to “bunch” and become uncomfortable, and can easily be removed by the wearer.
In light of the above, it would be advantageous to provide a garment which includes mittens or gloves attached to the sleeves. It would also be advantageous to provide a mitten-sleeve combination garment which precludes a child from removing their mittens while out in the snow without the assistance of an adult. It would also be advantageous to provide mittens or gloves which are permanently attached to the sleeve of an undergarment so that they cannot be lost or removed without first removing the garment. It would also be advantageous to provide a garment that adequately prevents snow from coming into contact with the skin around the wrist area, where there is traditionally a gap in the mitten/coat coverage. It would also be advantageous to provide mittens with extended sleeves that are not prone to “bunch” or fall down to the wrist and become uncomfortable to the wearer.